What I wish I knew with Katie Dixon

Katie is an outstanding teacher and someone I have known since she started her SCITT training. From her very first day as a trainee, she stood out as someone who would have a big impact in the education world, and the years since she qualified have proved just that. Perhaps her greatest quality (though she has so many) is her ability to intuitively build great relationships with her students and colleagues so that the maximum is gained from every situation. Putting people first is what enables Katie to achieve such high standards with her children, as she knows what to do and when, and that is a skill that every great teacher has mastered.

In this podcast we talk about ...

• How being thrown in at the deep end to teach in a school in Germany having received no training, led Katie to realise she actually loved teaching.
• The terrifying moment of facing 30 children for the first time who are all your responsibility and all different. But how quickly the terror passes when you find out what those children need from you and how you can do the best for them, as that's what really counts.
• The importance of getting to know them all as little individual people and how essential it is that they get to know you too. Because, when you know what makes them tick, you can drip feed that through the day and create a happy classroom. Then anything is possible.
• Being creative and getting children to have fun whilst learning, as this 100% leads to better learning and higher standards. Who would have known that magic potions in fraction lessons and TAs dressed as aliens could so successfully motivate children to learn.
• The challenge of finding the balance between getting things done and letting children learn in their own time so they can explore concepts in depth.
• How taking a dead fox into class that had been killed by a car in snowstorm created lifetime memories for a class.
• When you start teaching you are focused on not making mistakes, doing things right and getting through the day, but how you need to take some time to look back on the wonderful light bulb moments, that everybody has, because those are the moments that remind you that teaching is an amazing thing to do.
• The importance of linking learning to the real world in as many lessons as possible. We are preparing children for the real world, so we must make sure they can see how their learning links to real life. Every teacher should ask themselves, 'Why are we learning this?', and then share that information with the class.
• How teachers can get resources to teach children about what is happening in the world today that will enable them to develop their critical thinking skills when considering problems across the globe and recognise when they are being fed fake news.

To find out more about the inspiring work Katie is doing to educate students about the real world go to: Twitter: Economist Foundation (@Econ_Foundation) / Twitter Email: foundationteam@economist.com Web: Home - The Economist Educational Foundation (economistfoundation.org)